Stress-induced current in thin silicon dioxide films

Low-field current following Fowler-Nordheim stress of thin gate oxides is studied. The conduction mechanism is attributed to trap-assisted tunneling of electrons. For oxides thicker than 100 AA, this stress-induced current is observed to decay as traps are filled without significant tunneling out of traps. In thinner oxides, steady-state current flows when there is an equilibrium between trap filling and emptying processes. This model is observed to be consistent with stress-induced current behavior in a wide range of oxide thicknesses (60 AA to 130 AA) and process technologies.<>